Prevention of torture in detention

DIGNITY works to ensure that people who are imprisoned or
placed in other closed institutions have a dignified life.

We are working to reduce torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment in institutions where persons are deprived of their liberty.

Worldwide more than 10 million people are behind bars. Prisons are under pressure and there is limited space, which increases the risk of violence, abuse and torture. Many are held as detainees in institutions such as police stations, psychiatric hospitals, military detention centres, asylum centres and partly also refugee camps.

Torture, violence and brutality thrives in a world without transparency, with the absence of the rule of law and where officials are not held accountable for their decisions and actions. This is why torture not only is a tragic incidence that harms individuals but also a political and institutional phenomenon that undermines democracies and societies and in the long run creates societies marked by insecurity and violence. The prevalence of torture is always a sign of a dysfunctional society.

DIGNITY develops among other new interventions and measures to prevent torture in institutions where persons are deprived of liberty.